1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the automated determination of terms for purchases, including product options and configurations, financing terms and the like, and more particularly to flexibly determining any one subset of purchase terms based on a user specifying a requisite subset of other purchase terms.
2. Background of the Related Art
Computer networking has significantly altered the global marketplace for many goods and services. For example, consumers can access the Internet to shop on-line for goods and services without having to leave their own home. Large companies having affiliates throughout the world are often interconnected via high-speed intranet computer networks in an effort to provide goods and services of consistent quality to consumers in many different locations throughout the world.
One worldwide market that has seen explosive growth on the Internet is that of automobile sales and the administration of credit and lease plans to support the financing of purchases thereof. Numerous web sites have sprung up that are intended to facilitate the consumer's evaluation of the many makes and models of vehicles offered by manufacturers. These web sites typically provide pricing information (both base price and available options), as well as specifications and performance evaluations. Often, a web site will provide a simple application program that calculates an approximate monthly payment based on user inputs such as the price of the vehicle, down payment, duration of loan or lease, and interest rate to obtain an approximate monthly payment. Sometimes, the program can also calculate a purchase price based on a desired monthly input and duration. The results provided by such an application do not typically reflect the terms and constraints of specific programs offered by financial institutions, and thus can provide only a guideline.
The web site may also provide a link to a web site sponsored by a financial institution that is in the business of financing the lease or purchase of vehicles. Such a web site will likely provide information concerning the institution, its various financing plans and perhaps an on-line application that a consumer can fill out to electronically apply for credit with the institution. This type of web site may also include an application program that can calculate monthly payments or a permissible purchase price based on purchase terms supplied by the user. If a dealer or manufacturer sponsors a web site, the web site may also provide specific information regarding financing options available to purchasers through the dealer or manufacturer.
The loan calculator programs heretofore available on such web sites are limited in that they require the user to input virtually all of the terms, including the duration of the financing program, the interest rate and the type of financing plan chosen by the user. Thus, the results provided by the program are based on assumptions made by the user concerning the programs that are or may be available from the institutions providing the financing plans. The best that these applications can provide is still an approximation for guideline purposes only.
Often, institutions providing financing plans have many different types of plans available, each of which can vary depending upon certain contextual information and constraints. For example, some plans may be for the financing of vehicle purchases, while others are for leasing the vehicle. Typically, the interest rates for each type of plan will vary as a function of many factors. Some of these factors include the duration of the plan, the amount of any down payment made by the purchaser, the age of the purchaser, the type of vehicle, the nature of the purchaser (e.g. corporate or individual), and even the state or country in which the purchase is made. Some plans will be available only under certain conditions and not others. Global institutions may have many plans available in one state or country not available in another state or country. The more global the institution, the more difficult a task it is for the institution to maintain all of the available plans and their variations.